Vast majority of working asylum seekers in low-skilled jobs, research finds

The vast majority of asylum seekers in Ireland who are working are in low-skilled, low-paid jobs, according to new research.

Ireland granted international protection applicants the right to work in mid-2018.

More than 12,000 applicants have been granted labour market access permissions up to the end of 2022.

Research carried out by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) looked at international protection applicants in the Irish labour market.

It found that since being given access to the labour market in mid-2018 and the end of 2022, 80% of people applying for access to the labour market for the first time were granted permission.

A labour market access permission is valid for one year and can be renewed; 94% of renewal applications were also granted.

Most went into low-skilled jobs, involving lower wages and poorer working conditions, according to available data.

The report cited research from 2023, which found that “non-Irish nationals are more likely to be in lower quality jobs than Irish nationals and that a migrant wage gap exists, with non-Irish nationals earning on average 78 cents to every 1 euro earned by an Irish national”.

It says: “This differs depending on the region of origin of the non-national. The migrant wage gap is compounded for women, who face a ‘double earnings penalty’.”

The most common reported job titles were general operatives, such as in a warehouse, healthcare assistants, kitchen porters and cleaners.

The research found that 135 people aged 16 and 17 were granted permission to work between mid-2018 and 2022.

Despite the high levels of permissions granted, the ESRI said that gaps remain in labour market integration support for international protection applicants.

It said that applicants cannot access some employment support and there is no tailored labour market integration strategy addressing the particular needs of this group.

It also said that while progress had been made on issues such as access to driving licences and bank accounts, international protection applicants still face challenges in gaining employment in practice.

These challenges included the remote location of direct provision centres leading to a scarcity of jobs; access to childcare; discrimination; and the underemployment of applicants in jobs that did not match the qualifications they held.

“The introduction of labour market access in Ireland in 2018 was a positive development in the reception of international protection applicants in Ireland,” said Emily Cunniffe, co-author of the report.

“Our research shows a sizeable number of applicants have sought to work in Ireland.

“There nonetheless remain key barriers that can hinder access entirely or can result in applicants working in jobs that do not match their qualifications.”

The research forms part of an EU-wide study conducted by the European Migration Network (EMN), which is funded in Ireland by the European Commission and the Department of Justice.